I thought you might all appreciate a status of the class.
What an intersting week this has been on my end. My mailbox has been filled with well over two hundred emails:I quit counting. These emails outlined your progress in finding a space and getting started on the response group projects. The process has been so fascinating and varied. Some groups are using blogs, one google docs and one may be just using emails. Two groups are planning group projects while the other two are doing independent writing and getting response from other members. I am still confused on the final name selections so if one person from each group would respond to this email and let me know what your handle is and if I have all information correct, I would greatly appreciate it. Here are the specifics as I see them:
The Canniest Composers are working on creating text for Flotsom. They are using Google docs to communicate. The group includes Jeanne, Lance, Debbie, Darla, and Jan. Their organization so far has been outstanding.
The Poets are also working well together creating work modeled a bit after Silko’s “Sky.” They created a concordance of words to use in their personal writing. The group includes Dawn, Robert, Ruth, Molly and Shelly. I believe they do not have a site but are just using email for communications. Is that correct?
Creed, Janet, Sandy, Deanna, and Jerrilyn are using another blogspot. One has even posted a piece of writing for response. Be sure and check out the blog at aswcmemoirs.blogspot.com. Good work! I am not sure yet what name they have selected. (Update: Alaska Gems)
Another blog has been set up on Wordpress which gives us a chance to check out places to blog. AK Writers, Caitlin, Cortney, Kylie, EJ and Marlie, are in the group (sorry I am unsure of the name) that has akwritersblog.wordpress.com as a home. Be sure and take a look at their neat layout which looks like it will work well. (Update: Alaska Writers Blog)
I am pleased with every group and the coordination that has gone on. I have observed good initiative and leadership in every group. That said, unfortunately, some of you have not been actively involved. This process requires that each of you do your part. That will be doubly important next week when all of you will need to post and respond to others in a timely manner. This is a priority. If you have back assignments, leave them behind and work with your group.
8 comments:
Sondra,
Thanks for the update. Our groups name is The Alaskan Gems, I think.
I am really enjoying this process. If I could only STOP pushing the wrong buttons, whatever. I keep loosing what I've written/tried to post. I'm my own worse enemy sometimes. I glad I made myself take this class however, because my learning curve needs to get a lot of curving and more twisting to get going on this computer world with all its daily changes.
My daughter is trying to buy a house down in Colorado right now and I'm learning with that, too. Have you looked at all these things that world is doing on the internet now. You probably could buy a house never leaving your current abode if you are connected.
Enough rambling, thanks again for the update, I need to go get some lunch before I pass out here.
Yours, JJ
Sondra our group name is Alaska Writers Blog...kind of like writers block. We were all having a hard time being creative enough to come up with a name.
I'm sure you told us this already, but when should we be finished with our project?
Hi all, I just wanted to let you know that Robert has been chosen to be the new principal of Tunttutuliak in the Lower Kuskokwim School District. I will be an Instructional Coach and spend 50% of my time at our current site Kongiganak, and 50% of my time in Tuntutuliak. I will be trained in SIOP and work with the teachers on sheltered instruction, and stay out of Roberts hair.
Anyway, we are very excited and I just wanted to share.
Congratulations to the Gables on their new adventure! It sounds exciting. Thanks for posting!
Sondra, I'm lost again. I'm trying to figure out where I should be posting my response to the article you suggested we read and I've wasted too much time trying to find the right place so here I am and here I go. As I mentioned last night, it was kinda funny that this week of testing we are discussing assessment value and that a week after I had my students work with a grading program you find this article on "Computers Grade Students' Writing". Wow! Anyway, I enjoyed the article and found it informative. First off, I agree that "Student essays always seem to be riddled with the same sorts of flaws". I wish I could just submit all the essays I have to read to a grammar program that would correctly catch all the mechanical type of errors and I could read for purpose met and content. I waste valuable time on the mechanics and really enjoy discussing their vivid points and/or their flawed arguments. They would prbabably like getting their papers back sooner, too. That would be the "cool" part for us both--time management.
You'd think with all that great technology out there I could get some help with my red-pen-itis. By the by, I use every color but red but sometimes it still looks a bloody mess even in purple or bright lime green.
I wonder if there is already an e-Rater available and my department head refuses to let us know about it. Ha! Ha! She's not real big on any thing "computer-ish".
As Lesli Hanson stated, "kids like taking the test by computer and teachers are relieved..." We have used some programs like the Turnitin.ocm at our school and I tried it again this semester. I had used it in the past but as my own computer knowledge has increased I'm more comfortable using it now. I used it this time (and I am going to this next week with my ninth graders) as a teaching tool. I want them to see that cut and paste isn't the correct way to write a research paper and that they MUST learn to cite where they took their info from and that's that.
The librarians are more than happy to help with this because they keep getting told by the poweers to be about copyright laws and their job in enforcing them. So we're all on the same page on this and ninth grade is the best place to start. Well, at the high school level, of course. Others should probably start sooner.
As the article continued to mention, "that technology isn't as good as a teacher but cuts turnaround time" and I think that would be a great start. I'm only one person and I can only catch so many mistakes especially time after time of seeing the same ones.
I thought it was interesting that it mentioned that some students commented that, "Different teachers grade different papers differently" Duh? I can't even say I grade all papers the same because I often consider who is the author and what I think they are capable of now and if I see improvement. Understand? That human element will always enter into it. Haven't you, at one time or another, raised a student's grade after you've asked them to explain what they were "trying to say"? I think I need that leeway.
In closing, I agree with and like to end with the closing quote of this article, "Now we can focus more," Ed Brent said. "Are they making a good argument? Do they seem to underrstand? Are they being creative?" I think both the students and teachers could benefit from a computer program that could help us do our job--learning to better communicate and make our point, period! JJ
Post in the About the Reading for the week because I think more people are checking that out. I have directed them to read your post, JJ. I think it is a particularly valuable one!
JJ- I enjoyed your thoughts on correcting essays. I only have two writing students, but I have had more in the past. It is a very tedious process. I read the information about the computer program now being piloted in several states and thought that might be interesting to look into here, so I sent the information on to our English teacher and the superintendent. I didn’t hear back from the superintendant, but the English teacher was very interested. She specializes in writing, so she has papers going from every student in this high school. She thought it might be nice for the students to run their own papers through before they hand them into her, more as a pre-grading system.
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